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The Dunland Civil War
The Dunland Civil War was a war between the Kingdom of Dunland, and its former duchy, The Kingdom of Blackdale that lasted 10 years, from the 13th of Traumen 1013, to the 2nd of Wyerwin 1023. The technological advances made during this time period, which affected the outcome of the war, have made the conflict known in some circles as the "War of Iron and Oil". It was the deadliest conflict ever between two kingdoms on Dunland, leaving an estimated 2 million dead in its wake, the most deaths in a major war since the Long Summer. On the 11th of Traumen 1013, the then Prince of Blackdale, Bertrand Howe declared himself King of Blackdale, a political move brought on by the Howe Dilemma, as a foreseen declaration of the separation mounting between Dunland and Blackdale. The war was fought for many reasons, chief among them being that King Percival Howe, the King of Dunland, was given right by his grandfather to claim the throne over his uncle Prince Bertrand Howe. Another reason for the mounting conflict was the change to the policy in Blackdale around the time of the Coronation of King Percival. Bertrand pushed policies that benefitted humankind in Blackdale while leaving other races to the wayside. He claimed that it was done out of pride for the spread and creation of the Common tongue, born out of humans, and specifically born out of Blackdale. This pride was seen by most as an anti-multicultural statement, but to some loyalist within Blackdale it became seen as a call to end the Elven influence which was permeating the culture of Dunland. The war itself was rather one-sided, the Kingdom of Dunland won a majority of the battles, but not without great loss of life. The Blackdale forces fought in their homeland and were able to defend it better than anyone expected since they knew the area well. Major Battles The Battle of Blasted Barrow (1013): The first major front of the war took place in Blasted Barrow, a canyon near Silverton. This is the only major battle that took place on Dunland soil. The battle was known for being the first and only major conflict where mechanical tanks were being used by both sides. The conflict started at the end of summer and ended in the winter lasting 6 months, and as such conditions were harsh during this first battle as both the summer and winter ravaged the landscape, each the hottest and coldest seasons in years. The battle was a decisive victory for Blackdale, but due to the harsh conditions, they couldn't easily maintain a foothold within Dunland and retreated to Obsidian. The Siege of Obsidian (1013-1016): Known for being one of the most impenetrable city, the siege that took place in Obsidian was the longest single battle during the civil war. A majority of the forces of the Blackdale army held the city for three years, with storerooms stocked and filled with supplies so the fighting could last another 5 years. The city's placement made it so that the armies either had to go through the city head-on or traverse the vast rocky hills that surround the city in every direction. There were major loses on both side of the battle, which caused King Percival to seek new options when tackling the problem. This lead to the creation of two new airships, the Screaming Angel, and the Leviathan. Along with the King's airship, the Gilded Eagle, this flotilla managed to turn the tide of the war along with internal subterfuge which caused the destruction of the anti-aircraft weapons. General Volduin Halbacht cemented the victory by salting the fields of Obsidian before razing the city to the ground, as a show of force. The Battle of Fault Creek (1016-1017): After the elongated Siege of Obsidian had reduced the forces of both sides to paultry numbers, the next battle seemed to be the one that could turn the tide and it did. The Battle at Fault Creek is widely seen as the major turning point in the war, it was a decisive victory for the Kingdom of Dunland, and it caused the rapid downfall of the Kingdom of Blackdale. In hopes of emulating a similar level of technology to win a battle, the upper echelon in Blackdale decided to pour most of their funding into the production of tanks. This ended up backfiring on them, as Fault Creek was fought by Dunland in smaller squadrons, each with a magic user in the company. This allowed the units to be more mobile than expected, while still having the tools to deal with a tank squadron. '''The Battle of Green Swamp (1017): '''The battle of Green Swamp was the first new front during 1017. By this time King Percival had imagined that his uncle would concede the war after the efforts at Fault Creek and decided to leave direct combat for a time and instead secure many locations within the continent. During the Battle of Green Swamp, the forces of the Kingdom of Dunland encountered many druids within who fought back harshly against the army. It seems that most were unaffiliated with Blackdale, and were defending their practicing beliefs in the Old Way, as it is illegal to worship in Dunland. This conflict was rather short, lasting only about 3 months. '''The Siege of Greenwall (1017-Ongoing): '''The Greenwall family have been practicing their belief in the Old Way for many years, a form of druidic magic that doesn't get used very often as there are some dark connotations to its use. It is said that this use of the magic has caused the Siege to continue for as long as it has. Soldiers often report drowsiness brought on by the area itself, as well as horrifying nightmares. The Hit-and-run tactics of the standing army in Greenwall and the ancient swamp have made it nearly impossible to penetrate the castle. Barton Greenwall, the liege lord of the area has no interest in the war itself but stated that it was willing to defend his familial castle until his death. Since the end of the war, there has been little interest in taking the castle, though the siege is still in effect. '''The Seven Candles Battle (1017): '''The battle that took place in the reclaiming of Lynvale was one rife with tragedy for the familial house of Lydenwyr. With the Kingdom of Dunland pressing nearer into the Elven city the liege lord Ivinio Lydenwyr used his personal guard made up of his seven sons and daughters to lead the charge against the forces of King Percival. In the ancient customs of this Moon Elf family, you burn a candle whenever there is a death in the family, and it is seen as a way for the spirit of that person to feel a sense of warmth before becoming a spirit or ghost. Lord Ivinio Lydenwyr burned Seven Candle one for each of his children, as they would all die in the battle ahead, thus ending the Lydenwyr bloodline. Upon the taking of the city, Lord Ivinio attempted to take his own life but was stopped by the soldiers who sacked the city, and he was taken as a prisoner of war back to Kronstrad. '''The Rust Port Massacre (1017): '''There is very little in the way of verifiable information about what occurred in Rust Port during 1017. The city had no place in the war and was no being used by Blackdale to hold soldiers. And yet a massacre occurred there perpetuated by General Volduin Halbacht, who admits to a conflict of some sort but doesn't go into detail about what may have caused this, simply saying that they did what was right in a time of war. Among the causalities of this conflict were ten members of the Junagage Arcanis, done in by another member named Vanden Hamin. Both Vanden and Volduin are set to be charged war crimes for their actions at Rust Port. '''The Siege of Settlestone (1017-1019): '''Prior to the Siege at Settlestone, there was a massive push for acquiring new recruits for the end of the war, and as such many of the soldiers who fought in the Siege had been completely green, seeing no live action. As a result, it took far longer than expected for the Kingdom to reacquire the city. It was similarly razed and salted as Obsidian had been. '''The Battle at Cross River (1018-1020): '''A culminating battle which left nothing by the capital city Redstar between King Percival and his uncle Bertrand. It was yet another battle that took far longer than anyone expected. Unforutianly it was the battle that saw more civilian casualties than any other conflict, even the destruction of the major cities. The Blackdale forces had grown desperate and used the citizens to their advantage with mock surrenders, or blending in with crowds of rushing people. It was seen as one of the dirties battles for that reason. '''The Siege of Redstar (1020-1023): '''The Siege of Redstar lasted many years, as the capital city of Blackdale had their remaining forces all within the city walls. It ended with The Red Night. The Siege itself saw the destruction of two major airships, the Leviathan from Dunland, and the Skybleeder, which was King Bertrand's personal airship. It also proved that despite a no-win scenario, King Bertrand was willing to see everyone in his city die before surrendering to the war. '''The Red Night (1023): '''The Red Night is another often disputed incident at the very end of the war, where neither side has taken responsibility for. On the 13th of Traumen, the 10-year anniversary of the start of the war, a large all-consuming fire began in the Hospital Ward of the city of Redstar, very close to the Palace of the King. The fire was bright red in coloration giving off the impression that it was some sort of magical fire. This fire burned the interior of the city, and there was seemingly no way to put it out. The armies of Blackdale and the citizens of Redstar burned, while the armies of Dunland hesitated to enter the city until the fire was done. The fire burned all through the night, and by the next morning, nothing was left. This left the army of Dunland combing through the city looking for an answer to the cause of the fire, and where the upper echelon of Blackdale was. '''The Victory at the Vunderkeep (1023): '''The culminating event, which wasn't necessarily a battle was the discovery of the upper echelon of Blackdale en route to their unfinished castle Vunderkeep. The generals and King Bertrand were all captured and taken back to Kronstrad to face trial. The soldiers who made it to the Vunderkeep found many prisoners of war working on finishing the castle, and it was witnessed how poorly treated they were. The POW's were fed scraps of food, kept in cages, and were all in poor health. The liberation of this slave camp on the 2nd of Wyerwin signified the end of the war.